this past weekend we went to the north shore of lake superior and brought along our dog ella. i knew i wanted to surprise tony with some sort of trip, and thought this would be a perfect place because we could bring our dog as well. it can be a struggle sometimes to take a trip that includes your dog. we travel frequently and have had to leave ella behind a number of times (special thanks to family members and friends that have watched her for us when we have been gone!) i thought i would put together a guide for any dog-loving readers that are looking to head up to the north shore.
where to stay:
caribou highlands lodge in lutsen
caribou highlands is an idea location for fall and winter visits because it is near lutsen mountain and hiking trails. we got the pooch package, which means they basically waived the pet fee ($35 per night) and gave us a goodie bag for ella that included locally made dog treats, a dog water bottle, and a tag for their collar. our pet-friendly room was on the first floor of the lodge, which was very convenient for letting ella in and out. our favorite part of the hotel was that pets can go pretty much everywhere in the hotel except the restaurant and the spa area. we sat by the fire in the lobby area, made smores out by the bonfire, went to the gift shop, and roamed the hotel. overall, a very great pet-friendly hotel!
where to eat:
our favorite place to eat was voyageur brewing company in grand marais (see photo below). they have a rooftop patio that is dog-friendly and even provides water bowls. meanwhile, me and tony got to have beers and great food. perfect! we also went to lockport marketplace in lutsen. they have an outdoor patio that is dog-friendly and they serve both breakfast and lunch. for dinner each of the two nights, we were so exhausted that we got takeout food from a couple restaurants (poplar river pub and sven and ole’s) and ate at the hotel. we really liked this option too because the hotel was super dog-friendly, we could eat in the lobby by the fireplace, and then make smores after, so i recommend this too!
what to do:
hiking at cascade river state park
see my post here about our day at cascade river! i included some of the photos again below. this is a great dog-friendly place to hike and wasn’t super crowded! just make sure your dog is under control, good around other dogs, etc.
walk to artist’s point and swim in lake superior
artist’s point is a connected island that goes out into lake superior (see photo below!) the walk out to this point is about a half mile, so a pretty quick walk. the walk starts out as mostly gravel, and that was where we stopped for ella to take a swim and for tony to skip rocks. the water is freezing but we still couldn’t keep ella out of it. she is quite the swimmer!
